Budding Relationship: 5 Stages of Love
by dodger
Summary: How Seto's and Joey's relationship grows through the 5 Stages of Love: Attraction, Romance, Passion, Intimacy and Commitment.  Originally written for the Stages of Love community on live journal
1. Passing Notes:Attraction

HAhahaaa...so I like attempted to do these one summer for the Stages of Love community. I decided to do the "5 Stages of Love : Attraction, Romance, Intimacy, Passion, and Commitment". Well I had written them, but I was too lazy to type them all up until now. Here is the first on of the series for the prompt " attraction". Hopefully, I will get around to posting the next couple in the series!!

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Seto Kaiba was bored. Not only was it Monday and third period biology with Mrs. Bass, but it was the fact that he was there, in Domino High to begin with. He pondered what had to have been the millionth time since he had entered the doors of the school his freshman year, for the exact reason as to why he was there in this god-forsaken dump of a school, in the first place.

He was, after all a child genius, whose gift had been cultivated (in both good and bad ways) by the best tutors his adoptive father could buy. So why, again he asked himself was he here, at sixteen and CEO of his own company, sitting in the back of a classroom listening to some underpaid twit of a teacher prattle about how cells replicated.

Seto huffed, and rubbed his sore temples. He couldn't wait to get the hell out of school today, even if it meant going back to his office to put up with his damned board of trustees, who had been raising hell lately due to Kaiba Corp's recent stock performance.

He placed his head on the cool metal of his desk. He was done for the day.

"Mr. Kaiba!"

Seto lifted his head to see the angry glare of his teacher.

"May I ask, Mr. Kaiba, why you decided to take a nap in the middle of my class?"

Seto rolled his eyes. He was in no mood to deal with his teacher, or any other form of authority.

"I was bored." He said simply, and watched as his teacher's expression turn from annoyed to angry. He also noted that the whole class was now staring intently at the standoff between himself and Ms. Bass.

"Well," Ms. Bass fumed, "I am SO sorry that you are bored, Mr. Kaiba. Tell me, if you are so bored, why are you here? What is making the high and mighty Seto Kaiba grace us with your presence ?"

Seto smirked, and replied, "Truant Officers, ma'am."

Seto watched his teacher become more enraged. Normally, it was not like him to be confrontational with his teachers. He usually went to school, went through the motions, left, went to work, went home, and repeated the next day.

The whole class had burst into laughter, and Ms. Bass was attempting to recover the class' attention. One laugh, however, stood out among all the rest to Seto. It was a bit nasally and loud, but then again loud did suit Joey. Seto glanced at the unruly blonde, who was notorious for, and usually on the receiving end of their teacher's wrath for his smart-assed comments or other delinquent activities.

Many wrote Joey off as a simple dumbass; in fact, Seto has done the same when he had first met the blonde. But through duel tournaments and misadventures, Seto had come to learn the depth of the blonde's soul, and his passionate nature for those he cared about. And as much as Seto hated to admit, he did admire the blonde's spontaneous clever moments that had pulled himself and Yugi out of trouble.

It also didn't hurt that the blonde was easy on the eyes, too. There was something attractive about the boy's tousled hair, unkempt uniform, and general loud nature that intrigued Seto to no end. There were times in class or at work Seto had caught himself imagining what it would be like touch the smooth skin of his fellow duelist, or to kiss Joey's flushed cheeks. Seto smiled to himself, yes, Joey looked adorable when his face was red, even if said cheeks were flushed in anger because Seto had called him "mutt" or "puppy." In fact, Seto made sure he used the pet named often, just to watch Joey's face flush with anger.

If Seto had wanted to be honest to Ms. Bass, he would have said that Joey was the reason that kept him coming back to this rat hole of a school. Seto stole another sidelong glance at the blonde…only to realize that a pair of brown eyes were staring right back.

Joey smiled and gave Seto a thumbs up. Seto's eyes (as much as they did not want to) flew back to focus on his irate teacher.

"Detention, Mr. Kaiba. For your smart mouth. Now sit and pay attention."

Seto gave the teacher a curt nod and returned to his seat. As he sat pretending to focus on the lecture, a small crumpled piece of paper landed neatly on his desk. Seto's blue eyes darted around the room looking for the culprit. His eyes landed on Joey…who was smiling that idiotic puppy grin at him…and…and was that a blush across the blonde's face?

Their eyes met for a moment, and then Joey quickly cast his eyes down at his desk and then back up to Seto. Seto looked down at his desk, and stared dumbly at the note before returning his gaze to Joey.

Joey had a bemused expression on his face, and he repeated the action, this time adding a slight downward shake of his head, as if to urge Seto.

Seto unfolded the note, keeping a questioning eye on the blonde.

_Detention's not so bad, when you got company._

Company? What the hell was Joey getting at?

"Mr. Wheeler!!"

The screeching sound of Ms. Bass' voice made the note fumble in Seto's hands.

"How many times have I told you not to pass notes in class?!"

Joey smirked, "About a hundred times ma'm. At least."

"Detention, Mr. Wheeler. For the entire week for being a repeat offender…and for your accomplice, too."

Seto groaned. There went five important meetings. He hoped that they could all be rescheduled, or else the board was going to have his skin. Surprisingly, he wasn't as angry as he would have normally been about the prospect of missing work. He glanced again at Joey, who winked back at him.

"Class dismissed!"

As the students shuffled out the door, Seto remained seated; he was usually the last to leave. While he sat, gathering his belongings, he noticed out of the corner of his eye the faded and worn uniform whose wearer seemed to be waiting to for the young CEO.

"Thanks a lot, mutt," Seto growled.

"Aww, come on, it'll be fun," Joey smiled, and leaned close over the desk. Dangerously close. "We could get to know each other better," the blonde continued in a low voice. Seto stared back at Joey, taken by surprise from the blonde's seductive tone, and the fact that he had been caught.

Joey laughed at Seto's surprise, "What? You didn't think I'd notice ya leerin'?"

"I wasn't leering'" Seto countered.

Joey grinned, "Ah, but you aren't denying that you've been looking, tho'"

Seto opened his mouth to bite back, infuriated that the mutt had discovered him…but he couldn't.

"S'okay," Joey said softly, "I'm guilty too."

Seto couldn't believe the words that had come from Joey's mouth. As the shock wore off, Seto felt his mouth grow into a smile. He was able, for his own preservation, to keep the smile "Kaiba-ish." He didn't think Joey would let him live it down if he had sat there grinning like those silly school girls that swooned when he so much as breathed in their general direction..

"So you're guilty too," Seto replied with a slight smirk. Joey smiled, trying to match Seto's mock-smugness. "Yeah. So," he motioned towards the note that was still on the desk. "About this detention situation?"

Seto stood then, smoothing out his uniform, before leaning seductively close to the blonde to whisper huskily, "It's a date."

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I hope you all liked! Please R&R to let me know what you think!! Crit is always appreciated! 


	2. Just Out of Curiosity Romance

**Title: Just Out of Curiosity (Romance)**

**Pairing: Seto X Joey**

**Warnings: None**

**Rating: Pg-13**

**Notes: ** My second in the Stages of Love Series. This one was a lot of fun to write, especially once I figured out what to do. I didn't want to do a stereotypical date or flowers and chocolate scenario, and I kinda like out this chapter came out. 

Just a note: I do not own _Cosmo_… it however owns me, as I am a wh0r for its trashy confession stories….

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_**Is there Romance in Your Love Life? Take Our Quiz and See How **__**You**__** Rate!!**_

"Who tha hell would believe this trash?"

Anzu huffed, rolled the issue of _Cosmo_ she had been reading, turned and hit the blonde boy who was perched on top of the desk behind her.

"Jeeze, Joey, didn't anyone ever tell you its rude to read over people's shoulders?"

The blonde shrugged, "Aww, you're just mad that I caught you reading that tripe."

Anzu growled but refrained from taking another swing at Joey. "Its not tripe, Cosmo is a reputable women's magazine, who's information has been tested and used in the pursuit of helping people and their lifestyles."

Joey smirked, crossing his hands behind his head, "Oh _please_, they like, recycle the same quizzes every issue. I've seen it in the mags Serenity has. All the same and totally bogus.

You can't figure out romance or relationship issues from a magazine."

The said magazine was thrust against Joey's chest, "Fine. If its sooooo bogus, why don't you disprove it by testing out yours and Kaiba's relationship?"

"Why should I have too?" Joey said as he nervously looked around the halls , hoping no one would see him holding a girly magazine."

"Awww…what' wrong. Don't you want to see how you and Kaiba measure up?"

Joey blushed . While it was no secret that he and Seto were seeing each other amongst their friends, the pair did not go about broadcasting their relationship.

The blonde pushed the magazine back towards Anzu, "Seto and I are fine, I don't need some stupid quiz to figure out our relationship."

"Fine then," Anzu said shouldering her bag, "If you're so confident, then you shouldn't mind tossing that for me? I'm late for class as it is bye!" She promptly turned on her heel, leaving her friend in the middle of the hallway clutching the _Cosmo_.

Seeing his friend disappear into a classroom, Joey turned and all but ran down the hallway looking for a trashcan. He found one near the locker room and as he prepared to discard the offending girly magazine, when a sudden jolt of curiosity hit him.

Peering over his shoulder to see if he was truly alone, he began to flip through the magazine.

_I wonder how we rate? Just out of curiosity…._The blonde thought.

**Question 1: Do you and your lover have significant titles for each other? Ex. Nicknames? Yes or No?**

_Well he does call me 'Puppy'..or 'mutt' when he's mad at me...but 'puppy' for the most part. And I call him 'moneybags'…so I guess that's a 'yes' for this one._

**Question 2 (Quality time): How often do you see each other?**

**a. All the time…we're joined at the hip.**

**b.A good amount- after work, for dinner, at least once on the weekend.**

**c. Umm….does meeting up for sex count as 'quality time'?**

**d. Lover?? What lover?**

The blonde's forehead knit in thought. While he did spend time with Seto after school, it was usually after he left Yugi's or the arcade. They usually met up for dinner out, or he'd do his homework while Seto worked late at Kaiba Corp. During school, however was an entirely different story. They made their attempts, but their schedules often made it near impossible for them to see each other.

_So I guess that's 'B' then. I mean we see each other, but we aren't joined at the hip like that couple in 11-C, and Seto and I haven't done the deed yet so there goes 'C'…_

The next question left the blonde even more puzzled:

**Question 3 (Gestures of Affection): How do you and your lover let each other know that you care?**

**a. An e-mail or too through out the day…just to see how you both are doing…**

**b. Surprises that include flowers or small notes around the house/workplace.**

**c. Presents!!! LOTS AND LOTS OF PRESENTS!! For your weekly anniversaries!**

**d. Notes? Flowers? Presents? We can DO these things??**

_Hmmm…tough one. Seto and I send e-mails…and we do leave notes in each others lockers. As far as presents we haven't exchanged anything major…and flowers are too girly…But I guess it could be A or B…wait am I even supposed to have two answers??_

**Questions #4 (Reciprocation) How do you give back??**

Joey stared at the question with a scrutinizing glare…_The fuck??? It's the same question! Just worded differently!_ He hastily checked off the answer that was most similar to his previous answer and moved on.

**Question #5 (Tactile) How often do you touch?**

**a. The usual kiss at the end of the date**

**b. You kiss, but there is some touching involved**

**c. Uhh…we're a little too PDA…we've been kicked out of public places before.**

**d.** …**Does sex count?**

'_B' definitely, _Joey thought smiling as he recalled how Seto had pulled him behind the bleachers for a stolen kiss…or three, before Joey had to sneak off to class. _Yeah, Seto and I are healthily affectionate._

**Question 5 (location, location): Your ideal date would be…**

**a. Dinner and maybe a moonlit walk on the beach.**

Joey rolled his eyes before proceeding on.

**b. Dinner, but then a quiet stroll back to the home and maybe a movie while cuddling on the couch.**

**c. Dinner and then straight to the bedroom**

**d. A quick cup of coffee in between work or a fast dinner before heading home.**

"I swear these things are so slanted and biased. I guess …it'll be 'B' again…" Joey muttered.

"And what's wrong with A or C?" A voice purred from behind Joey, causing the blonde to drop the magazine in surprise.

"W-what are you doing here?"

Seto bent to pick up the magazine, "Class got out early," he said as he began to flip through the articles.

"I know you are trying to get extra credit for English, pup, but I don't think _Cosmo_ counts as "outside reading." Seto remarked dryly.

Joey snatched the magazine back from his boyfriend,

"Its not mine!!" he fumed, his face turning that adorable red that Seto loved. The brunet decided to see how far he could press his puppy, "Okay, so what ARE you doing with it? Its not the Kama Sutra issue.."

Joey's face turned impossibly redder, "Set…we haven't…"

Seto smiled and leaned in towards the blonde for a quick peck on Joey's cheek. The teenage CEO let out a soft laugh as he felt Joey calm at the gesture.

"So seriously…what were you doing with it?"

Rather than explain, Joey turned to the article and showed it to Seto, "Anzu dared me."

Seto snorted, "Romance Quiz?? You? Feeling insecure, pup?"

"Naw. I was just curious."

Seto continued to scan the quiz, "Surprised its not some stupid 'friendship' test considering it was Anzu…"

Joey let out a laugh, "She'd clobber you if she heard you. You know how passionate she is about that subject."

"Whatever." Seto said flipping the magazine closed, "It's the same recycled trash they put in there for insecure females."

Joey chuckled, "That's what I told Anzu"

Seto leaned into the blonde pressing him against the wall, "So, what are you doing now?"

Joey sighed as he felt soft lips descend on his neck, "Going to class…unfortunately."

Seto let out a grunt of disappointment.

"Sorry," Joey sighed, "Its starts in two minutes. I dun wanna get another detention…it'd spoil our dinner plans."

"Pick you up from Yugi's?" Seto asked. The blonde nodded.

"Yup…oh and do me a favor?" Joey said as he leaned and gave Seto a forceful kiss on the mouth. Before the brunette could battle back with a kiss that matched Joey's intensity, he felt a wad of paper pushed up against his chest,

"Throw this out for me?" Joey smiled teasingly as he pushed back from Seto's embrace,

"I'll see you later, k?"

Seto watched Joey saunter down the hall towards his 5th period class, before turning to discard the magazine. Blue eyes flicked quickly down the cover, and then over the brunette's shoulder.

He was alone.

The glossy pages were flipped open, as Seto began to search for the quiz.

_I wonder how we measure up…just out of curiosity…_

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Yay another one done. Sorry if the formatting when nutsy, but it was the best I can do with this odd story format! Hope you all enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think! 


	3. Overtime: Passion

"Overtime"

5Stages of Love: Passion

Warnings: Umm a little hot and heavy boy on boy action…I am sure you all don't mind ;)

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"So…" Joey said with a seductive smile as he sat back on the large oak desk. He made sure that he slid close enough to cover the paper that Seto had been glancing at while the brunette typed away at his computer.

Blue eyes stared fixedly at the screen in front of him. " 'So?'….What do you want now?" He gruffed, hoping that whatever Joey wanted, it could wait until he finished this page…or three.

Out of his peripheral vision he saw Joey's hand reaching for his silk necktie, before the blonde gave it a gentle tug, in his direction. A socked-foot had now invaded his leather armrest, and yet Seto stood firm in his attempt to ignore his boyfriend. He had work that needed to be done; he had to remain focused.

Joey slid closer then, reaching to cup Seto's cheeks and then turn Seto's head in his direction.

"It's quitting time." Joey said with a dark smile.

"Is it now?" Seto smirked.

"Yes it is…and I want you to stop." Joey chucked, his eyes practically brimming with lust. Seto smiled inwardly. Well, if that's how Joey wanted to play, Seto was going to make him earn it; Joey had after all, interrupted his work.

Seto turned away from Joey's grip, feigning disinterest as he fixed his glance back to the computer screen, "Well, then…what if I wanted to work overtime on this project."

Joey was about to protest before Seto continued, in an over exaggerated tone, "I could work all night on this…,"He flashed Joey a teasing look before adding, "Unless…there was something else you wanted me to work on."

The blonde smiled, "Actually," He said as his hand returned to the neck tie, "There is something that needs extra work."

"Oh really?" Seto purred allowing Joey to tug his attention back to the other boy, "You'll need to convince me, in order to abandon this project."

Joey leaned in then to kiss Seto full on the mouth. They remained there for a few moments, before Seto broke the kiss, "I see. And how urgent is this project?"

"Very." Joey husked as he loosened Seto's tie, and leaned in to unbutton the top of the brunette's collar. He felt Seto's long thin fingers twine into his hair, as Joey attacked the freshly exposed skin.

Seto bit back the moan in his throat as Joey attacked his neck, he was enjoying the frantic energy Joey was exhibiting. He had already surrendered to the blonde's apparent wants, but he couldn't help but drive the blonde a bit more crazy. "Mmm…" He said as he made a half-hearted attempt to turn from the blonde's grasp, "but what about my current project…?"

Joey grabbed him back hard and kissed Seto in urgency, "I think you can be more productive in another area." The blonde half-whispered into Seto's ear.

Seto chuckled, ad leaned down to capture the bonde's lips, "Alright, I am convinced. Let's work overtime…" He gave the blonde another long kiss, and then yanked the all-too-willing boy into his lap.

Seto's mouth was quickly attacking Joey's neck and Joey moaned as Seto, pushed his shirt up and began to slide his cool fingers against his warm flesh. He wriggled in Seto's lap as the sensation was both ticklish and sensual. Seto wound one arm around Joey's waist to grip him tightly, while the other continued to tease Joey's chest.

Joey wrapped his arms around Seto's neck, as he allowed the other teen free reign over his body, "I like working overtime," The blonde chuckled. Seto made a noise of agreement, not bothering to remove his mouth from Joey's skin. Joey smiled and continued his musing.

"I'd knew you'd like this proj-Ah!" Joey gasped. Seto had found his nipples and was now teasingly stroking him. The blonde regained his composure, "There's no distractions," he temptingly whispered straining not to gasp as Seto slid his other hand underneath the shirt to help the other attack the hardening nubs.

Joey ground his hips hard against Seto's; moaning when he felt the other's awaking arousal against his own. "We can get _a lot_ done…"

Seto looked up a Joey, sapphire eyes now clouded with lust, "Let's get to work then."

He stood then, lifting Joey with him to land the blonde on his back over the desk. Joey spread his legs to allow Seto room to lean in over him.

"I love you." Joey whispered as he looked into the intense cobalt gaze that loomed over him. Seto leaned into drop a short chaste kiss on Joey's lips, "I love you too, pup." Joey smiled as he watched the gentle expression slide from Seto's face to be replaced with the lust that had gripped the boy moments ago.

The pair fell back into their heated pattern, as hands found the other's shirts and began to hastily divest themselves of the offending material.

Joey groaned, "Nn…Set. H-how far do you wanna go…" before his voice was cut off in a deep groan has Seto bit down on the juncture of his shoulder and neck. The blonde gasped as Seto suckled at the sweet flesh while his hands successfully managed to free the material of Joey's shirt from its buttons. He pushed Joey's white shirt opened and once again ran his hand over the smooth chest.

"Let's just see how far we get…that's the beauty of overtime, pup."

Joey smiled as he leaned upwards to grip Seto's tie urging the other downward, "I hope we get a lot done…"

Seto smiled as he bent closer towards Joey's chest in order to run his tongue over Joey's nipple. The blonde shuddered in Seto's grasp.

"I think we will…" He opened his mouth again, this time to take the erect bud into his mouth. He could sense Joey straining to watch him, the other's body attempting to push up against his weight. Seto smiled as he moved slowly towards Joey's chest, he could feel the blonde tingling in anticipation…

The large doors of Seto's office slammed open.

"Seto! I'm hungry! Can we go home yet-?"

Mokuba's sentence died in his throat at the sight before him. The pair on the desk was frozen in shock. Moments seemed to stretch into hours as the three stared at one another, waiting for someone to make the first move.

"Uhmm…"Mokuba stammered, feeling the heat rise to his cheeks, "I'll go tell Roland to get the car." He said as he averted his eyes to the floor.

Seto flew off of Joey as if repelled by a negative force, "Good idea. We'll be down in a few minutes," he said as he scrambled to fix his clothing.

"O-oh okay." Mokuba said quietly, eyes still glued to the floor. "I-I'll see you in a few minutes," and then fled from the room.

As they dressed in silence, Seto could feel the blonde's embarrassment radiating from were he sat on the desk, re-buttoning his shirt.

"Sorry."

"About what? pup."

"About _that_ Seto. I guess I got you too riled up… I know how you want to be modest around Mokuba..."

Seto turned to look at his lover, "It was my fault as well. And I am sure he'll get over it. Don't worry about it."

"Okay."

Seto cleared his throat, as he re-adjusted his tie, "So.."

Joey looked up from his buttoning, "What?"

Seto pressed his lips against Joey's check, "Overtime tomorrow night?"

Joey smiled, "Sure…As long as you remembered to lock the door."

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Ahahaaa….sorry folks, no lemon this time around, maybe when I do the Intimacy chapter  Poor Mokuba. Hope you all liked! 


	4. To Us : Commitment

Dating Kaiba had opened Joey's world to many things: Fancy dinners at upscale restaurants he had previously never dreamed of stepping a toe-tip into, a complete wardrobe of chic clothing exclusively for when he had to accompany Kaiba out at functions that involved stuffy share-holders and industry leaders, and finally, having to deal with an entourage of paparazzi and a security detail constantly around.

What had once been his simple world of family, friends, hamburgers, Duel Monsters, arcades, lounging around in his boxers from afternoon to sunrise had been almost eclipsed by a world of family, Seto, friends, (gourmet) hamburgers, Duel Monsters, getting up at the ass-crack of dawn and being presentable to run around with his ultra rich boyfriend.

Joey had been initially worried that the simple things that he and Seto had built their relationship upon, would crumble under the demands of celebrity and image.

Finally one night, It had all come out,during an argument between them over why suddenly, Joey was shying away from going out to the trendy sushi place (the one had become his favorite date-night spot), or why wasn't he wearing the insanely expensive watch Seto had asked him to wear due to an endorsement deal Kaiba Corp. was involved with that season.

After much needling on Seto's part and name calling from the both of them, Joey had cracked.

All of his fears poured from his mouth as bitter and wrenching as vomit.

Seto said nothing. He just stood there and listened; listened to all the things that had been chewing Joey up from the inside. And it infuriated Joey to see his boyfriend looking so pityingly at him,

"Ya' think I am stupid don't you?" Joey had sniffed, when the tirade had passed, "I don't care what you think, Kaiba, not all of us deal so easy in this hoity-toity life-" and then "...why aren't you saying anything?"

And then Seto had knelt in front of him and pulled Joey into his arms, "I don't think you're stupid at all," With a squeeze he continued, "I have had the same fears too. That one day, you would wake up and leave all of this, and me behind."

The confession stunned him. It was very rare to hear Seto admit any vulnerability, and it made Joey feel like a downright asshole that he had thrown his boyfriend of four years' gesture of empathy in his face. But it was comforting to know that Seto had felt this same anxiety before,

"I don't want to leave. I just don't want us to change," Joey had sniffed as he carded his hands absently through his boyfriend's soft hair.

"It won't. I won't allow us to change, as long as you're here to help me," He brushed a kiss against Joey's nodding forehead, holding Joey as the anxiety that was previously thundering through him, began to leave.

Seto cupped Joey's face in his hands, wiping away the blonde's tears with his thumbs, "Want to stay in tonight? There's a B-Horror movie marathon on...we could order pizza," he offered, placing another kiss on Joey's forehead.

Joey smiled and returned the kiss, "I'd love to. I can run to the store and grab some popcorn and other things..."

Seto nodded and helped Joey to his feet, "Just don't get too much junk-food, puppy...you and Mokuba tend to eat yourselves sick."

Later, as he sat leaned up against Seto's warm frame, with a variety of snacks, half-eaten boxes of pizza on the coffee table and floor, Mokuba long-passed out on the over-sized ottoman, and the sounds of horrendous acting surrounding them, Joey was feeling immensely better.

He cuddled closer to Seto, "Thank you."

"For?"

"This. For not thinking I am a coward...and for accepting me and all my 'blue-collar ways' "

Seto smiled and pulled him closer, "Then, I should thank you, for putting up with me and for all my 'rich and snobby tendencies'; for finding something to love within me."

Joey kissed him then, "I am sorry we fought."

"It was coming, Joey, I think it was an issue you and I had to discuss, and we were both too scared to face it. Despite everything that happened tonight, I am glad that we were able to deal with it" another kiss to the forehead, "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, much better. You're not disappointed that we didn't go out, are you?"

Seto shook his head, "No, not at all. In the end, I got what I wanted: a relatively quiet evening with you."

Joey made a confused look, "What do you mean by 'relatively'?"

Seto gestured to the tv where the woman was still screaming (terribly) as the swamp-king ape-thing with its costume's chronically exposed zipper crawled towards her, and then he tapped Joey on the nose, "Ever since you and I started dating, I've accepted the fact that as long as you're around, I'll never have peace and quiet"

Joey smirked, "You say that, like it's a bad thing, Set. You know you like it when I get loud-"

Seto coughed, "Mokuba..."

"He's sleeping."

"He's caught us too many times. I am trying to set a good example here."

Joey shrugged, and repositioned himself so that he was leaning once again upon Seto's shoulders, "Fine..fine...so how long do you want me around?" He said in a teasing voice, "Unless you really don't want to admit that you actually like me around to stir up your OCD perfect life."

Seto made a quiet laugh, "You may be on to something pup," he then swallowed, his expression turning serious as he turned his body to face Joey, "As for how long..."

It was probably the first time Joey ever saw Seto look truly nervous, as he watched Seto's slim fingers pull a small velvet box from where it had been stuffed in the couch cushion, "Joey...I had intended to do this at the restaurant tonight...this wasn't how I wanted to ask, but given what we discussed, I don't want to wait to make it 'perfect', because this, right here," he gestured to the room and to the way they were sitting, "This comfortable, simple, thing we have between us is perfect, and I want it to be this way forever."

Joey watched as Seto slid off the couch to the floor on bended knee, his eyes and features so uncharacteristically unguarded and open to Joey, that Joey barely realised that his mouth had gone dry and that tears were pricking at his eyes.

Seto opened the box to reveal a polished simple gold band, "Joey, will you...?"

Joey had slid of the couch and practically tackled his boyfriend to the ground, "Yes!" he was hugging Seto tightly and pressing enthusiastic kisses to the brunette's cheeks, "Yes I will."

He heard Seto exhale in relief, "You didn't wait for the rest of my speech, pup," he said amused, from where Joey had pinned them to the floor.

"Didn't need to. I already promised you, that I would whatever you were going just now say, when you asked me upstairs if I'd help ya keep "us" from changing. You should have pulled the ring out then," He pressed his mouth against his fiancé's and kissed him zealously.

Seto rolled his eyes, "Well, in my defense, I was trying to cheer you up, and figure out how I was going to propose to you, since my original planned changed."

"Are you disappointed?"

Seto shook his head, "Honestly, I am happy with how things went this evening...this way," He smiled as he slipped the ring over Joey's finger, "Seems more natural for us. Don't you agree?"

Joey nodded as admired the look of gold against his pale finger, "Wouldn't change this for anything." He leaned back allowing Seto to sit up, reached to grab their soda cans off of the table, and handed Seto's drink to him,

"To us," Joey toasted.

Seto laughed, "To the both of us, always remaining 'just us'"

"You change, and I'll make you sleep on the couch," Joey teased.

"And if you change, I promise you, that I'll be severely depressed. I need someone to keep me on my toes and disturb my quiet."

"So you do like it..."

Seto made a non-committal shrug and then clicked his soda can against Joey's.

"To 'us'."

"For the rest of our lives."

"No matter what the paparazzi say..."

"No matter how many times you insist fast-food is an acceptable food group..."

Joey rolled his eyes, "No matter how stupid our fights are...To 'us'..."

"For the rest of our lives."

Wow, sorry for the long hiatus! I got so busy these past few years that I left the fandom for a bit to work on othere projects. This story seems to get a lot of attention, so I finally was like, "Okay, I'll finish it"…but didn't have a good idea for commitment, until today I banged this out pretty quickly, I hope you all like it!


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